
“To lead people, walk beside them.” Lao Tzu – Leadership
Should great leaders follow?
Students understand the dynamics of leadership firsthand, both from the perspective of being a follower of their teachers and being role models for their peers. They have strong opinions about how leaders should behave and what ethical responsibilities they should have to others. It’s important to give students space to reflect upon the qualities of good leadership.
Join Steve and Dan Fouts for an unforgettable conversation about leadership using the Teach Different 3-Step Method.
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Image source: Wikimedia | Tom@HK
Transcript
Steve Fouts: 0:05
We are teaching different with Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu with a quote about leadership. “To lead the people walk behind them.” Leadership is an important word. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are, especially in these times when a crisis is affecting an entire society like it is with this Coronavirus beginning in the spring of 2020. From a student’s perspective, leadership is seen every day among peers, teachers, and the principal. Students are exposed to many models of what leadership looks like and what it means.
Dan Fouts: 0:54
If I can jump in. They are becoming leaders themselves. In a classroom, they may lead a group in a project or something.
Steve Fouts: 1:06
Exactly. This quote is thought provoking. What would you say the claim is?
Dan Fouts: 1:20 – Claim
I think he’s saying that in order to be a good leader, you have to allow others in front of you. You have to lead from behind. Maybe that means people are setting the direction of where you want to go, and you’re following them. It’s having a sense of humility, putting your own ego behind what the people really want. It’s almost like you’re sacrificing something, in order for the people to get what they want.
Steve Fouts: 1:57
Yeah, that’s a good way to say it, humility and sacrifice. I think most people associate leadership with being somewhere out front, and the people are looking to you for leadership. This quote is suggesting that you need to be behind others. I’m thinking about the way our society is functioning right now. Our President is bringing these scientists up to the podium to help us understand what the virus is doing to our society and some of the dos and don’ts. That we should be practicing social distancing, be careful, and avoid putting other people in jeopardy. He’s actually letting scientists talk to the people. I think it’s an example of leading from behind by allowing others, who have the necessary expertise, to be in front for the present.
Dan Fouts: 3:02
Yeah, out of necessity. To bring this into a classroom, you could have the kids talk about a time when a teacher gave them the authority to take charge of something. Maybe they were a group leader or they led the class for a little bit. It’s very difficult to organize these events, of course, but that might be something that the students can recognize and go…
Steve Fouts: 3:39
Yeah, I’m glad my teacher gave me that opportunity.
Dan Fouts: 3:42
Exactly, and we, as teachers, are always talking about the need to give authority to students.
Steve Fouts: 3:49
They can identify with that for sure. Let’s go to the counterclaim. Suggest another way of looking at this quote. How would you say the counterclaim? What words would you use?
Dan Fouts: 4:03 – Counterclaim
A leader should be out in front setting an example. They are looking behind them, seeing followers doing what they want them to do.
Steve Fouts: 4:16
The followers are looking up to them, and the followers need someone to follow.
Dan Fouts: 4:25
Right, and especially in the crisis example. You gave an example of the President allowing scientists to lead, but there’s also the dynamic of the people wanting a strong presence to lead the show, because we’re scared, we’re anxious, and we need someone to step up to lead.
Steve Fouts: 4:44
Right, if there are too many voices, sometimes it gets confusing. Lao Tzu is saying to lead the people walk behind them. Well, it’s hard to follow more than one person. They’re not always on the same page. It’s so much easier to put your faith into a leader and follow that leader’s example.
Dan Fouts: 5:08
Right. Back to tapping into the student’s experiences, you can ask them to talk about a time when a leader had to take charge of a situation. It could be a time when the principal or the teacher had to take charge of a situation. Maybe there was a classroom management issue, and the teacher had to come in to resolve it. Someone needed to take charge.
Steve Fouts: 5:37 – Essential Question
Right. I would say that usually happens during a time of uncertainty and crisis. I think a lot of people would agree that having a strong leader makes the most sense. Here’s an essential question you could ask to close up the conversation and get the students to reflect on this idea of leadership. Should great leaders follow?
Dan Fouts: 6:07
The current Coronavirus crisis is a wonderful piece of curriculum to explore with that essential question. To what extent should a president rely on other people to lead during this crisis? You brought that up earlier. This question relates beautifully to that. I’m thinking of other crises in history. The simplest examples are World War II, the Cold War, and the Civil War with Abraham Lincoln. Should great leaders follow? It would be interesting to explore that question with different historical events and content.
Steve Fouts: 6:56
Also point out who it is that they’re following, because you can’t follow everyone. If you’re going to be humble, and take Lao Tzu’s approach to leadership, how will you know who to follow?
Dan Fouts: 7:14
Right. I’m going back to the Civil War example with Lincoln. He was an interesting mix of both of these styles of leadership. He was a strong leader who took charge, but he’d also let the people out in front. He visited troops on the front lines to motivate and inspire them, and to convey the idea that the President is following you. You are leading the way. It’s hard to get away with that kind of leadership.
Steve Fouts: 7:51
Right, you have to be very skilled to transition to and from each of the different styles. Maybe it’s all situational. Different leadership styles are needed for different situations.
We hope you enjoyed Lao Tzu and what we think is a really thought-provoking short quote about leadership. We have another conversation in our Conversation Library that uses a quote from Lao Tzu on anger that’s really good, too. His quotes are always short and to the point.
Make sure you visit our Conversation Library where we have many conversations like this, each with a different quote, a sample claim, counterclaim, and an essential question to get you started. Thank you everybody for listening. We will see you soon.